Wednesday, July 30, 2014

During a recent publicity interview during Comic Con 2014, Bone's star David Boreanaz insisted that he was not obsessed about how many seasons the Fox TV drama could last.

But based upon his challenging tweet to POTUS' pussinillious foreign policy positions, Boreanaz either feels quite secure with his place in Hollywood or is comfortable with the current run of the show. Or maybe the Season 10 story-line has prepared him to face an overbearing government which jails perceived political enemies.

Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Since former New York Yankees skipper Joe Torre managed to not mention longtime Yankees owner George Steinbrenner during his 28 minute speech as he was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame, it is worth recognizing "the boss".

Friday, July 25, 2014

When an official EPA Twitter account sent the message: “I’m now a C-List celebrity in Kim Kardashian: Hollywood. Come join me and because famous too by playing on iPhone!”, it got the attention of establishment politicians. While the tweet was probably an automatic message sent by a game app which an EPA employee had on a work phone, it rankled the ire of twenty eight TERM incumbent Representative John Dingell (D-MI 12th).

Dingell's staff tweeted the message that the Dean of the House had no idea what the Kardashians are. Later, after being briefed, Dingell was only left with more questions.

While Dingell's balliwick has been the Energy and Commerce Committee, this wasteful use of taxpayer dollars should call into question EPA budget issues.

Wednesday, July 23, 2014

When President Obama chose six term Senator Max Baucus (D-MT) to be the Administration's new Ambassador to the Peoples's Republic of China in February 2014, there was a short term appointment into what had been the world's greatest deliberative body, as that seat needed to face the voters in November 2014. Montana Governor Steve Bullock (D-MT) appointed his Lieutenant Governor John Walsh (D-MT) to the position, as he was already running for the seat and incumbency might help Walsh's chances in a uphill year for Senate Democrats, especially in "purple" states.

The people were not able to fully vet now Senator John Walsh (D-MT) until the campaign was in full throes. Unfortunately for Senator Walsh, this increased scrutiny exposed an embarrassing chink in his political armor.

Part of an elective appeal for John Walsh is that he spent 33 years in the Montana National Guard, rising to the level of Adjunct General. Walsh led the 1st Battalion 163rd Infantry Regiment into combat in Iraq and is the first Iraq War veteran to serve in the US Senate.. The 53 year old freshman Senator made his military service a major Walsh had made it major selling point of his candidacy.

But the New York Times recently reported that in 2007 when Walsh wrote his "strategic research project" (akin to a Masters thesis) at the United States Army War College, he seemingly plagiarized substantial portions of the 14 page project on American Mid East Policy. The New York Times analysis indicates that a quarter of the quotes from “The Case for Democracy as a Long Term National Strategy" were borrowed from other authors without attribution. The Washington Post points out that Walsh "borrowed" from a paper written by a Harvard scholar in 1998.

This was more than sloppy scholarship on the part of Walsh. Walsh concluded his thesis by offering six recommendations that were lifted nearly word-for-word from 2003 Foreign Affairs piece by Thomas Carothers from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Some scholarship. Some honor. At West Point, the cadet honor code is "A cadet will not lie, cheat, steal,
or tolerate those who do." Cheating includes plagiarism defined as presenting someone else's ideas, words, data, or work as one's own without documentation.

When this plagiarism problem popped up in the press, Senator Walsh's campaign spokeswoman Lauren Passalacqua tried to quickly shoot down the scandal by saying: “This was unintentional and it was a mistake.” When that quick quip did not fly, Senator John Walsh told AP: "I don't want to blame my mistake on PTSD, but I do want to say that it may have been a factor. My head was not in a place very conducive to classwork and an academic environment." Walsh maintains when he wrote the thesis, he had PTSD, was stressed at a fellow veteran's suicide and was on medication. Anonymous Walsh campaign staffers pointed to drugs to treat PTSD to give a context for Walsh's circumstances.

Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome is a serious consequence of modern warfare, in which may not take as many lives or limbs but leaves mental scars. PTSD is often manifested by recurring flashbacks, hyperarousal, and avoidance or numbing of memories of the event. Plaigiarizing a master's thesis does not really seem to fit PTSD.

Other politicians have plagiarized and survived. Then Senator Joe Biden (D-DE) plagiarized British Labor Leader Neil Kinnock rise from humble roots (and later Robert Kennedy and Hubert Humphrey), which forced him out of the race for the 1988 Democrat Presidential nomination, but he bounced back and is now the Vice President of the United States. What is more memorable than sloppy scholarship is a propensity to blame others and play for sympathy.

Citing PTSD as an excuse for academic dishonesty demeans PTSD, dishonors Walsh's military valor, and smacks as a play for sympathy votes. The Walsh Senate campaign's tactic of employing underhanded excuses to invoke pathos makes one wonder if PTSD should signify "Plagiarist Thesis Shucking Disorder" in the District of Calamity.

Monday, July 21, 2014

Hamas is a Palestinian Sunni Muslim group that is internationally recognized as a terrorist organization. Hamas which has dominated the Gaza Strip since 2005 when Israeli settlements were voluntarily relinquished settlements to implement the Oslo Accords as part of the peace process.

Hamas is an acronym for Ḥarakat al-Muqāwamah al-ʾIslāmiyyah, Arabic for "Islamic Resistance Movement". The acronym means "Enthusiasm". But sometimes acronyms are given more meaning by actions.

The modus operandi of Hamas is to indiscriminately lob crude missiles at their Israeli "enemy" (the one's who ceded the territory where they operate). But these "brave" Muslim Brotherhood affiliates operate their rockets in the middle of civilian settlements, schools or mosques. The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) discovered 20 missiles in schools run by UNRWA and then handed them back to the "local authorities" to then be fired at Israel. Then there is the Shuja'iya neighborhood in Northern Gaza, Hamas used a mosque and two adjacent buildings connected by tunnels were extended to the Israeli border and used as a depot for Hamas rockets.

Even though the Israeli Defense Forces give early warning to civilians to evacuate before the IDF attacks in Gaza, the inhabitants defiantly refuse to leave. Some pro-Palestinian apologies reason "Where can they go?" But Hamas spokemen urged the civilians not to heed the IDF warnings. These human shields can then be pointed to as brutality by their enemy. This is why Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu labels Hamas tactics as a double war crime.

Hamas knows that it can not win conventional warfare against the IDF, but if enough Palestinian civilians are killed during Operation Protective Edge, the International Press can decry the humanitarian loss along with an anti-semetic gloss.

Former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meier anticipated this culture of death among militant Palestinians when she proclaimed: "We can
forgive the Arabs for killing our children. We cannot forgive them for forcing
us to kill their children. We will only
have peace with the Arabs when they love their children more than they hate us.".

Even though Hamas might sound like enthusiasm in Arabic, based upon their tactics and weltanschaaung, what Hamas really stands for is Hiding Among Mosques and Schools.

Sunday, July 20, 2014

President Obama's current Secretary of State John F. Kerry was making the rounds on the Sunday morning talking heads shows. With the crises concerning the shootdown of a commercial airliner in Ukraine by Russian paramilitaries, the quiet but questionable extension of Iranian nuclear talks and Israel's military incursion into Gaza to stop a fortnight of wild bombardments by Hamas forces, Kerry even felt obliged to venture to the challenging confines of Fox News.

During the contentious conversation between FNC Fox News Sunday host Chris Wallace and Mr. Kerry, the Secretary of State was challenged to explain an on-mike "moment of truth" uttered about Israel''s Operation Protective Edge. While Kerry was in front of a television camera in Foggy Bottom and wired via microphone to FNC, the Secretary of State had a conversation with an aide named John.

Kerry sarcastically characterized the IDF's actions as "a helluva pinpoint operation" to root out terror tunnels on the Israel/Gaza border. Kerry indicated that he felt compelled to rush over to the region.

It is worth nothing that these terror tunnels are on Israeli territory and the IDF has destroyed dozens of them in the first few days of Operation Protective Edge

Secretary of State Kerry's tone and tenor seems to demonstrate the Obama Administration's veiled disdain for America's strongest and most reliable ally in the region, namely Israel.

The episode also underlines the imprudence of the Obama Administration's repeated conduct of sensitive foreign policy subjects within range of a "hot mike". In March 2012, when President Obama told then Russian President Dmitri Medvedev: “This is my last election. After my election I have more flexibility.” Medvedev's infamous answer sounded like codewords from KAOS but indicated more friendly relations with the Russian Federation.

At the 2014 Western Conservative Summit, former Governor Sarah Palin (R-AK) rallied the audience of 2,000 conservative grassroots activists with a scathing speech decrying politics in the District of Calamity (sic).

Palin noted that: "[W]e don't do kings." But this was not a feel good historical allusion alaSchoolhouse Rock. Palin colloquially ticked off a list of offenses which the Obama Administration has been involved:

Man rocking us to our core. From Benghazi. Fast and Furious gun
running. Stimulus bust...greenies on our greenbacks. And scandals? NSA
spies. Obamacare lies. VA...let's die.The IRS aims to repress conservative's voice. The DOJ wiretaps
reporters. Violation of our religious rights. And then there's ignoring
illegal, in house fundraising that you heard recently has been going
on...the list of abuses it goes on and on...And look alone not defending borders is dereliction of duty. Violating the oath of office. If that's not impeachable....

Castigating the most polemic and progressive President in our nation's history would seem to be in a conservative's Common Core (sic). However, Palin embodied the spirit of the Tea Party speaking on behalf of the Forgotten Man by challenging Congressional Republicans to live up to their oaths of office.

Palin acknowledged that making the case for impeachment was not difficult. What is difficult is to have the will to do what's right. Inevitably that means impeachment.

But Republican party regulars also bristle at the suggestion of doing something controversial just before an election so the media can alienate prospective voters from voting for the GOP. As for the cautious inaction modus operandi, Palin notes that it misses the point that Obama is abrogating Congressional authority. Moreover, Palin laments that big GOP majorities do not necessarily reign in radicals, as was demonstrated from the wake of the 2010 wave election.

To buttress her call for patriotic citizens to unite and have the will to do their part in doing right, Palin implored:

It is our work now-- it is our turn. This President's Forgotten Man is "We the People". And We the People know that our best days are still ahead because we know that God shed his grace on thee America. He's given us our freedom to do what's right. God doesn't drive parked cars-- I think he expects us to get up and take action in order to defend these freedoms that are God given. I think that it's an affront to God to let this go on as He gave us these freedoms. We're not going to let someone-- a person, a party-- take them from us. We are not going to dethrone God and substitute Him with someone who wants to play God.

Invoking patriotism along traditional understandings of our founding (and believing them), recognizing God in America, adhering to the Constitution, advocating doing the right thing-- no wonder why progressives and the GOP Cocktail Party (not always different entities) consider Sarah Palin such a pariah.

Sorry Al Gore, the United States of America is not a democracy, it is a Federal Republic which holds democratic elections.

The video kvetches that Congress can't pass meaningful gun control, thus the system has been "hacked". Guess that the former Vice President hasn't read the Constitution lately. There is something called a Second Amendment which involves the rights of citizens to bear arms. Even the Supreme Court in the Heller case reaffirmed that INDIVIDUALS have the right to keep and bear arms.

If they Congress did want to do something about it, we would likely have to change organic law. Perhaps the former Vice President has not read the Constitution lately, but there is something called the Second Amendment, which allows Americans to keep and bear arms. Congress would have to vote 2/3rds in favor in each chamber and then it gets sent to the states, where 3/4ths of the states would be needed to ratify. If states wanted to do something, they could try convening an Article V Convention of States. More less radical activism on guns, this is the proper domain of the states.

Since Gore wanted to sound techie when referring to America's Democracy being hacked, it merits a geeky retort GIGO-- Garbage In, Garbage Out.

Saturday, July 19, 2014

Not even progressives are buying the "Poor Off" between former Senator and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Vice President Joe Biden, two leading liberals for the 2016 Democrat presidential nomination.

However, once the heir apparent to the White House is apparent, the Lamestream Media will be back to demonizing the Republican rich.

Friday, July 18, 2014

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) recently declared that "The border is secure". On FNC's Special Report with Brett Baier, Dr. Charles Krauthammer commented that Reid had gone off his meds.

Although Dr. Krathammer is a trained clinical psychologist who helped define secondary mania, he was not offering a long distance diagnosis of the Senate Majority Leader, but offering an incredulous exclamation about how willingly blind to reality Reid seems to be.

There is a maxim that a picture can tell a thousand words. To illustrate President Barack Obama's lack of leadership, one need not waste so many words.

A day in the life-- July 17, 2014

Top Left- A Malaysian Passenger Airliner with 298 people (including 23 Americans and 80 children) was shot down at 31,000 feet over Ukrainian airspace near the Russian border with a sophisticated Surface to Air Missile. Pro Russian "rebels" against Ukraine trumpeted a shootdown on Twitter and then retracted it once the civilian debris was spread over a path of 10 miles. These rebels also claimed to take the plane's black box. Russia wildly claims that Ukraine was responsible, claiming that the shot was intended for Russian President Putin and declaring that Ukraine was responsible for their own territory.

Top Right- After 10 days of intense indiscriminate bombardment from the Iranian backed Hamas terror forces from Gaza, and a Hamas invasion force into Israel right after a five hour seize fire, the Israeli Defense Forces launch a sustained air, sea and land campaign in Gaza to take out tunnels used to terrorize 2/3rds of Israel's civilian population.

Bottom Left- A picture of the supposed US border where an alluvia of illegal aliens are overwhelming the US Border Patrol as Other Than Mexicans expect to gain "permisos" from the Obama Administration. This stream of illegal immigrants are being kept in close quarters in makeshift refuge camps, often on underutilized military bases, without screening for communicable diseases like scabies, whooping cough, tuberculosis, Hand and Foot disease and swine flu. These illegal aliens are being distributed around the country, being given EBT (food stamp) cards and told to report for a hearing months (or years) into the future. The Obama Administration's solution was a $3.9 Billion spending bill, which only dedicates $100 million to the Border Patrol.

Bottom Right- President Obama's schedule included meeting with an unemployed American at the Barbecue Pit in Delaware, a partisan rally for raising National Highway Funds in Wilmington, Delaware and then off to New York City for two political fundraisers which were closed to the press. During the 30 minute Highway speech, Mr. Obama devoted 36 seconds to the world crises but noting that the downed jet "may" have been a terrible tragedy and our first priority is to determine whether American citizens were onboard. Nearly a day later, the Obama Administration's investigation can not confirm if Americans were onboard. Perhaps it is data lost on an IRS/EPA/FEC hard drive crash.

One of the more poignant speeches during the Senate floor debate was by Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX). Cruz observed that the practical effect of S. 2578 would gut the Free Exercise of Religion clause from the First Amendment of the Constitution and impose federal will upon all 50 states through the supremacy clause.

To bolster his argument, Senator Cruz concluded his speech by boldly invoking John F. Kennedy's quote on religious liberty to condemn so called "faith fines".

Seasoned political junkies realize that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) brought S. 2578 to a vote as a cheap political stunt which had no actual chance of passage but would gin up a liberal base through identity politics and scare tactic campaigns during a tough election cycle. While the bill won the votes of all Democrat Senators and a few RINO Republicans (Murkowski, Kirk, and Collins), it failed the cloture vote 56-43, with the Senate Majority Leader switching sides for the ability to vote on it again later.

While this vote on S. 2578 was doomed for legislative failure is instructive. Senate Democrats seem to care more about partisan politics and elections than respecting Federalism, the First Amendment and Religious Liberty. Cruz quoting JFK spotlights the progress (and arguably the devolution) of the modern Democrat party. And the episode shows how Christianity is endangered even in America,

The remarks in full of Senator Rand Paul (R-KY) at the 2013 Value Voters Summit sponsored by the Family Research Council.

The metal barricades seen in front of the dais reflected the Government Shutdown Theater, when the Obama Administration went to the trouble to "barry-cade" (sic) public monuments on the National Mall during the Government Shutdown in October 2013.

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Although the magazine hit the newsstands today, the news had leaked out several months ago-- ARCHIE ANDREWS IS DEAD. In "Life with Archie" #36, Archibald Andrews was shot while diving in front of a bullet to save his "best friend" Keven Keller (sorry Jughead), an openly gay newly elected Senator who wanted to champion gun control.

Perhaps this writer is too far removed from pre-teen consumer spending patterns, but it seems inconceivable that there is much of a market for such Archie comics priced at $9.99 aside from an OCD Comic Book Guy. Paltry Archie Comics sales figures bear this bias out. The regular Archie comic ranked #327th selling 4,063 copies. The penultimate "Life with Archie" #35 sold 2,064 copies.

Archie Comics CEO Jon Goldwater claims that this dramatic demise of the beloved redhead from Riverdale High was difficult. But judging from the edgy additions to an evergreen strip of innocence, Archie's ending with a big bang was not shocking.

Goldwater has tried to make Riverdale more relevant by adding homosexual characters like Kevin Keller, Harper the "handicapable" character, interracial relationships (in which Archie fathers a child with Valerie of Josie and the Pussycats). Goldwater also sought to capitalize on the zombie phenomenon with "Afterlife with Archie".

Archie taking a bullet generated lots of publicity while burnishing Archie's brand with heroic virtues. This dramatic denouement also conveniently closes a clumsy story-line. Several years ago, Archie marries both Betty and Veronica (albeit in parallel universes). After an issue of remembrance, readers can celebrate Archie's 75th anniversary.

It's a pity that Goldwater could not honor its few remaining readers and let Archie Comics die with dignity in plots that continued to revolve around high school hijinx, malt shops and fickle flirtations. Alas, rather than making Riverdale more relevant, the death of liberal Archie makes the funny papers more of a joke.

Pundits pontificated as to how other storied comics could politicize themselves. Conservative critics satirized Archie's apotheosis by speculating how his friends would perish is a politically correct cacotopia.

Considering the paltry sales of Archie's comics, this PC stunt will not sustain increased sales. However, culturally it seems to epitomize how mass media is jumping the shark ala "The Fonz" on Happy Days (1977).

Mia Love, the former mayor of Saratoga Springs, Utah, speaking at the 2012 Republican National Convention in Tampa, Florida. She lost her race for Congress that year by 768 votes along with an alluvia of outside opposition cash.

Love is again running for the 4th Congressional district. If she wins, Love's message of traditional values and belief in the American Dream will confound critics who paint conservatives with a broad jaundiced brush.

Tuesday, July 15, 2014

On the campaign trail in 2008, Michelle Obama made headlines when she uttered that she had not previously been proud of America. But when she was campaigning in Puerto Rico, the future First Lady revealed her vision of how America had to fundamentally change "for the children" of course.

A quote attributed to Mahatma Gandhi popular with the "Si, se puede" crowd is: "Be the change that you wish to see in the world." But considering illustrated Obama actions, one wonders. Gutting of our space program to be Muslim outreach; transforming the IRS into a political weapon against domestic "enemies"; Obamacare rules which entice businesses to convert employees into part time workers to dump them into public health exchanges; and overwhelming the U.S. Border Patrol with a flood of OTM illegal immigrants along with hamstringed rules which basically turns them into babysitters. It would seem that a Pogo-ism is more apropos: "We have met the enemy and it is US."

We are not destined to such flummoxing funny paper fortunes if enough of us can be drawn away from digital bread and circuses and act upon what is truly important and consistent to our time tested values. h/t: A.F. Branco

Wednesday, July 9, 2014

During a tough interview with Megyn Kelly on Fox News Channel, Patricia Ireland speaking on behalf of the National Organization for Women (NOW) sought to justify NOW's labeling of the Little Sisters of the Poor as part of the "Dirty 100" in light of the recent Burwell v. Hobby Lobby (2014) Supreme Court ruling.

Ireland deflected the denigration of the Catholic nuns as being like the "Dirty Dozen" with other corporations, presumably for fundraising efforts. But Kelly does not let her off than easily, suggesting that the nuns be considered "Groups with whom we disagree". The former NOW President kept insisting that the Little Sisters could "opt out" of the Obamacare contraception mandate. Except the alleged work around forces the Sisters to sign the Form 700 document permitting others to provide the abortifacients which are anathematic to their faith. Ireland offered patronizing lip service to the nuns' living their faith and helping the indigent infirmed. But what she does not realize is that if the Little Sisters of the Poor are eventually forced to pay for such unwanted services ordered by former HHS Secretary Kathleen Sibelius then they will move out rather than contravene their consciences. Ireland insisted that I.U.D.s, which is one of the abortifacients in question, does not kill eggs in the uterus. Well, that's not quite true. Generally, inter-uterine devices act as spermicide to prevent fertilization but copper I.U.D.s are touted as an emergency contraceptive for five days after intercourse. Most sperm dies within two days after ejaculation (even in the uterus), thus the emergency contraceptive quality of such I.U.Ds intimates that it prevents the implantation of the blastocyst thereby killing a fertilized egg. Ireland incorrectly asserted that the Supreme Court had ruled on the "opt-out" provision. Hobby Lobby covered closely held corporations with conscience objections but Obamacare opt-outs for non-profits has not been decided yet (although SCOTUS has offered a unanimous injunction pending appeal on January 24th, 2014). Ireland's fatal rhetorical faux pas was her bon mot that Supreme Court decisions do not affect the reality. The hostess of the Kelly Files jumped in and asked if Roe v. Wade affected the reality. T o borrow an oft uttered Ireland phrase from the interview "Bless her heart."